DTIS, Volume I - Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF)

commerce, information and communications technologies, various crafts and in the
tourism industry/hospitality management. There are no courses to provide certification as
mechanical engineers in a modern fishing fleet. There is no training in fishing methods
and on-board post harvest handling of the catch. This partially explains why work as a
fisherman is considered as something for the uneducated with associated low social status
that offers very little attraction for the young.
Training in food and fish processing, including quality assurance procedures, is nonexistent
in the Maldives. The Ministry of Fisheries Agriculture and Marine Resources
(MFAMR) offers short courses in fish filleting and packaging that target women.
The absence of, or insufficient training and skills that are relevant to the needs of the
economy stifles business development including the growth of small and medium scale
enterprises, which is crucial not only to generate employment but also to establish intra
and inter-sectoral linkages to the main fishery and tourism sectors. There is scope for
expanding and aligning more closely with market needs the training provided by the
Maldives College of Higher Education particularly the faculties concerned with hotel,
catering and hospitality services, management and commerce, maritime studies, and
engineering and technical services.
G. EMPLOYMENT
Despite the progress made in economic performance and other aspects of human
development, there are relatively high levels of unemployment.
The main reason for this is because the labour market has developed in a rather skewed
manner over time. The public sector employment absorbed 30 per cent of the labour force
in 2004. Public sector employment can in fact be considered as part of a social welfare
system. Private businesses in dynamic sectors such as tourism, construction and transport
and communications have increasingly imported the skills they require from the South
Asia region, notably from Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. MTCA and MATI estimate that
Maldivian nationals took up only 52 per cent of the 27,200 jobs created in the tourism
sector since the 1970s. This is mostly due to the shortage of relevant skills among
Maldivians and also to labour market rigidities in terms of cultural and traditional norms,
especially concerning women. For example, while in many countries the garment
industry is dominated by women, before the collapse of the industry in the Maldives, the
Maldivian work force was not able to adjust to an industrial style working environment
and most of the employment that was created went to imported labour. Similarly, in the
tourism sector, most hospitality related work is not considered suitable for women for
cultural and religious reasons.
The result is that employment opportunities are lost, accounting for levels of
unemployment and underemployment that are relatively high. In this regard, a key part
of the explanation of the unemployment problem among Maldivians is the effect of
labour market rigidities. Jobless growth has not been the problem in the Maldives; rather,
the jobs created by growth have been taken up by imported labour to a large extent.
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